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S03.E06: Off Brand


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That scene (the opening scene, with Nacho) was chilling.  It made me hate Nacho, even though I previously didn't have much reason to, and yet... I could see why he was doing what he did.  Very unsettling.

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(edited)

Arrrggghhhh.... browser is acting up and I can't edit properly.  I meant to say that I suspected that Lydia and Gus knew each other more personally (and speculated about it back in BB days), but never had proof.  I figured they dealt with each other directly and not just through their people.

Edited by TVFan17
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Good episode.  Not as great as the last three weeks but still, the show is on a roll.  Great stuff on the Nacho storyline, with Michael Mando doing some great work.

Rebecca can go **** himself.  Jimmy was in the rgith there.  And now bring on Saul Goodman!

Lydia!  Very cool seeing her.  She did talk about setting business up with Gus in BB Season 5 so it's great see those two finally in a scene together.

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(edited)
12 minutes ago, Bryce Lynch said:

This episode made me like Nacho more.  He clearly doesn't want to do things in Hector's ruthless way, but has no choice.  I am starting to wonder if he will be involved in Hector becoming paralyzed.  

Ultimately I was conflicted about it.  I hated that Nacho suddenly had to use such violence to satisfy Hector, even though I know that kind of thing (and much worse) comes with that territory.  But he didn't want to do it.  He didn't want to have to be that guy.  I could see that he was very anguished about it when he was at the sewing machine.

I am really wondering -- as we all are -- about how Hector ends up in his BB condition.  He is clearly not well, and Nacho sees that.  So we might all expect that Gus and/or Mike caused Hector all the trouble, because that would be an obvious assumption, but you're right -- Nacho could be involved, or even solely responsible for it.

Very intriguing, indeed.

Edited by TVFan17
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When Rebecca was trying to get Jimmy (Saul?) to go and check on Chuck, I had the same reaction as him. She can take up the cause and drop her career to take care of him if she wants. Jimmy and Chuck should be completely done with each other, IMO. I know they probably aren't completely done yet, but they should be.

I did have some sympathy for Nacho. He tries to go easier when people come up short, but that's just not the game Hector wants to play. You could tell he was like, "Shit", when he had to do some roughing up. Then he has to stick his neck out and get a gun put in his face because Hector wants six bricks instead of five? I didn't think so at first, but I think he'll definitely have a hand in Hector becoming paralyzed now that Hector wants to include his father's business in the dirty dealings.

Lydia's back, eh? She annoyed me to now end on Breaking Bad, but I'm curious to see the relationship between her and Gus. It'll be interesting to see just how much he values and leans on her opinion.

Howard just...keep on trying!

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Jimmy becomes Saul Goodman for the first time in Albuquerque in the same episode he says he's done with Chuck forever.  I don't know if there's any significance to that, but Saul Goodman can't be Charles McGill's brother.  And I like that Jimmy doesn't immediately become Saul Goodman, Esquire, but there's a transitional phase.

I thought the scene with Lydia was perfect.  No need to oversell it.

Interesting to see Krazy 8's business education.

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Mike’s daughter-in-law’s storyline is uninteresting, and I wish precious story-telling minutes hadn’t been wasted on it.

So Chuck is steeling himself, hmm? I guffawed at his Reynolds Wrap hoodie, on his way to the phone booth.

Yeah, Lydia! That was a nice reveal.

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While I understand Jimmy not wanting to help Rebecca help Chuck, I think he may have crossed a major line towards becoming Saul.  I wasn't shocked that he didn't help, but I was surprised that he was not the least bit torn about whether to help.  He seemed very callous and I fear that inner kindness and decency that makes us love Jimmy despite all his faults is dieing.  

Howard gave Chuck one helluva pep talk.  Chuck deciding to try to beat his condition is good, but the way he is going about it on his own could do more harm than good.

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(edited)
14 minutes ago, Sharper2002 said:

When Rebecca was trying to get Jimmy (Saul?) to go and check on Chuck, I had the same reaction as him. She can take up the cause and drop her career to take care of him if she wants. Jimmy and Chuck should be completely done with each other, IMO. I know they probably aren't completely done yet, but they should be.

I did have some sympathy for Nacho. He tries to go easier when people come up short, but that's just not the game Hector wants to play. You could tell he was like, "Shit", when he had to do some roughing up. Then he has to stick his neck out and get a gun put in his face because Hector wants six bricks instead of five? I didn't think so at first, but I think he'll definitely have a hand in Hector becoming paralyzed now that Hector wants to include his father's business in the dirty dealings.

Lydia's back, eh? She annoyed me to now end on Breaking Bad, but I'm curious to see the relationship between her and Gus. It'll be interesting to see just how much he values and leans on her opinion.

Howard just...keep on trying!

Lydia was very annoying on Breaking Bad!  I know that her quirks were supposed to be slightly comical, but a little of that went a long way.  And yet, that said, somehow I was happy to see her sitting in the car with Gus!   I am curious to see if she is the same way with Gus -- nervous, jumpy, prissy -- as she was when she met Walt and company in later years.  The Lydia-Gus dynamic could be very interesting, if we get to see much of it.

I appreciate that Rebecca cares for Chuck and his well being, and wants to help him, but I thought that she should have left well enough alone with Jimmy/Saul at that point.    Chuck is probably going to somehow try to reach out to Jimmy, either to harm him or to patch things up with him, and something will likely go horribly awry.   They need to go their separate ways.  They are each at a crossroads, as Howard said (about Chuck).

Edited by TVFan17
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I almost felt bad for Krazy 8.  So weird seeing him dressed in a nice polo shirt!

Glad we finally are getting a bit more of Nacho.  As much as I enjoy seeing Hector and Gus again (and hearing about all the shit that is going down with crazy-ass Tuco), I think Michael Mando is underrated on this show, and I like seeing more of what makes Nacho tick. Interesting that he is still a good solider (see: his ass-kicking to poor Krazy 8), but is clearly not happy that Hector wants to use his dad and his company as a front.  Makes me wonder what the endgame for his character will be.  I wouldn't be surprised if he makes a move against Hector.  Perhaps reconnecting with Mike, or maybe even switching sides?

I know the scene of Jimmy refusing to go talk to Chuck with Rebecca was suppose to be a big turning point, and I guess it kind of was, but I still really can't blame him.  Rebecca doesn't know the damage Chuck has done to Jimmy and just how loyal Jimmy was to him.  Even then, I don't think she should have asked him this early on.  Let him have a few days to get over everything that happened.  And looking past all of that, would Chuck even have let Jimmy back in?  I have a feeling Howard was the only one who could have done that.  Either way, I guess this was suppose to be a big moment towards him "breaking bad" (sorry), but I just don't think he was that awful for not wanting to help the man who was trying to ruin his life.

Not sure where they are going with Mike working to build a playground with his daughter in-law's grief group.  Kind of a dick move though to volunteer him without asking!  Also noticed Tamara Tunie played one of the members, so I have to think she'll play more of a part.

Ha!  Lydia's here!  This is should be.... interesting.  And Gus finds his chicken farm!  Go Gus!

I knew it was coming, but hearing and seeing "Saul Goodman" still gave me chills.  It's happening, folks!

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I didn't think it was slow, but there was an odd mix of the tense Hector-Nacho-Gus-Victor-Tyrus scenes, and the endless Chuck saga, and then Jimmy becoming Saul in a typical kooky way.

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1 hour ago, Spartan Girl said:

Chuck's ex can STFU. Jimmy had been the one that was taking care of Chuck for years while Chuck was sabatoging his career behind his back. Not because he was mentally ill, but out of pure spite. Jimmy does not owe Chuck shit.

If she's so worried about his welfare, she can start being the caretaker.

Thank you! I was about to post the same thing. Chuck may be mentally ill but that doesn't explain his animus toward Jimmy.

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(edited)
13 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

Thank you! I was about to post the same thing. Chuck may be mentally ill but that doesn't explain his animus toward Jimmy.

I am not sure you can separate the two things.  Chuck needs help and while I understand Jimmy not wanting to help, his sipping champagne from a Davis & Main coffee mug without the least bit of concern is beneath the Jimmy McGill that we have been getting to know for the past 3 years.

Edited by Bryce Lynch
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I really liked the episode a lot.  No surprise--I enjoy most of these episodes.  But I felt like a lot of things happened from a Lydia cameo that I wasn't expecting, to starting to wonder if Gus has less to do with Tio Hector's future condition than Nacho, to being surprised Chuck might seek out help to Jimmy's jump to Saul.

I was happy to see the opportunity for Bob Odenkirk to adlib when he was having the one-sided conversations with his clients. I found the last scene between Jimmy and Kim interesting.  She had this reaction as if she were wondering who she was dating.  It seems like that happens between them every now and then.  He does something she thinks is out there, eventually she learns to accept it, only to have him repeat the pattern.  I do wonder at what point she decides to say "enough."

Does anyone else think we might get a 12 month time jump at some point?

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I don't have a single drop of empathy for Chuck...Michael McKean has done an excellent job of making me hate him. 

Glad that Jimmy wants nothing to do with Chuck. This was what Chuck has been asking for. Jimmy realized he didn't need that toxic relationship in his life and he has better uses for his time. Chuck had taken advantage of Jimmy's love and good nature. Enough was enough. Plus, in retrospect, Chuck would have been much better off if no one had been enabling him all this time.

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(edited)
13 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

Maybe Jimmy should have given up the law to become a commercial producer/director.  He clearly has a gift.

I would love to see him produce a Tampico Furniture ad. :)

Jimmy would probably be a great used car salesman.

13 hours ago, Knuckles said:

He's not going to let Hector run over his father...and he must know that his dad is road kill if he works for Tio.

Nacho's father sees him as a dutiful son who will probably inherit his business. He would surely be shocked and disappointed if Nacho informed him of his involvement in the drug trade and would likely refuse to cooperate, earning himself a death sentence. Nacho will either have to involve his father's business while keeping his father in the dark, or find a way to remove Don Hector. 

Edited by ItCouldBeWorse
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I liked it. Great episode. I sense Nacho will be turning on Hector very soon. Probably, he'll strike a deal with Gus, and switch Hector's angina/blood pressure pills/whatever over with placebos. The next time Hector has an incident, he might become paralyzed. And Nacho has every reason to turn on Hector, too, with Hector wanting to involve Nacho's dad's sewing business as a front. 

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IF Nacho is ultimately the one to put Hector in the predicament we see him in during BB years, I have to wonder if Nacho will survive this series... or even survive this season.  I mean, I wondered that anyway, even before this episode, but now that we see a clear reason for him to want to stop Hector's shenanigans, I have to wonder if Nacho will fall victim to the Cousins.  We have not yet seen them truly unleash hell with a scythe (on this show), but I don't think we have seen the last of the Cousins on BCS.

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Interesting seeing things from Nacho's POV. That was a nice surprise.

And just when I was thinking about Crazy 8, in he walks. 

It was strange having that scene with Mike and his DIL, but I'm sure it's a setup for another storyline.

The montage of Jimmy talking to all his clients was fun. I liked the little bit when he asks the woman (I assume) how her husband passed, and as he listens, Jimmy grimaces. Makes you wonder.

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Sooooooo. Krazy-8 tells Nacho he was short on his earnings for the week because he has a "new kid who saw a cruiser and ran and threw his stash down a sewer" - anyone else holler at their TV, "Jesse!?!?"?

Or, could be Badger or Skinny Pete!

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My guess is that Nacho reaches out to Gus via Mike, and they conspire to poison Hector by substituting a chemical in his capsules. Hell, I'd think an amphetamine taken instead of nitro pill would have a good chance of producing a stroke/heart attack. 

I know people think Mike's DIL slows things up, but I think it is smart for the writers to illuminate occasionally that it is guilt/grief which motivates Mike, especially when those emotions are being manipulated. Remember what caused Jimmy to put on the pinky ring. I believe as strongly as ever that just as BB was primarily about the cost of pride, BCS is primarily about the effect of loss and grief. This show, like that last, is classically tragic. It takes time to fully develop this.

I'll note again that the cinematography in this show makes nearly everything else on T.V. look like a local cable access channel.

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I find myself cogitatin' over whether Jimmy was sincere with that last client - the B-29 pilot, as he marvelled about his war record and exclaimed him part of the greatest generation.  An inner city grifter?  Would he actually care?  If he does not, it very easily fits with his becoming what he became.  I am torn.

I so loved Mike's scenes.  JB's hint of a glint in his eyes - no more than that - when she pasionately told Mike that his son worshipped him, was wonderful.  Mike, like Jimmy, is too far gone to be a good guy.  But, neither became a total monster.

I spent the majority of the time when we saw Chuck in his home trying to decide if he was about to off himself.  I thought he was.  His use of "new beginnings" was just the turn of a phrase he would use to throw Howard off the scent and get him the f out of his house.  Having his last sentient experience being the old scotch would have been a pretty great way to go.  Now, I am waiting to figure out how his new plan will get to/harm Jimmy.  It is all Chuck has left to himself:  Revenge.

Thank goodness we all have more eps to follow!

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I think Nacho wanted to hand down a beating when it was suggested that it was "no big deal" that a pistol was placed to Nacho's head. Easy to say when it isn't your head.

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I'm still pondering Kim's hilarious reaction to Saul Goodman. I had to rewind and watch that 2 or 3 times. She seemed completely shocked, flabbergasted, blown away.  Perhaps even a little bit ... aroused?

The relationship between Jimmy and Kim is so understated, it's sometimes hard to get a read on exactly what is going on between them. I assume they're in a sexual relationship, since they are sharing the same bed (most nights -- I noticed his concern that she went home this episode) but we never even see them kiss. I do like how understated the show is with its characterization, but sometimes I could use a little more clarity.

Is the doctor Chuck called the same one we've seen before (played by Clea DuVall)?

Lydia! I never expected to see her on this show, though I guess if I'd ever thought about it, I would have realized it was totally plausible, once Gus arrived.

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(edited)

With all of the fun Breaking Bad character appearances throughout the 3 seasons of BCS, I find myself marveling over how many of them were taken down, either directly or indirectly, by Walter White.  Even obnoxious "KEN WINS" didn't escape Walter's wrath, although he got off a lot easier than some others did.

Also, I am finding that I like some of the BB characters who have appeared in BCS a bit more, now that I know them in their pre-Walter White versions.   I kind of feel bad for poor ol' Krazy 8.   But others -- like Hector and Tuco -- I dislike even more than I did when they were on BB, if that's possible.   I find Hector to be so unpleasant that he makes Gus seem like a ray of sunshine.  Gus can at least be friendly and charming.  Hector doesn't even try to be pleasant.

Edited by TVFan17
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As I live and breathe, Lydia Rodarte Quayle.  And Krazy 8.  The laundry.   And Saul Goodman.   At last this show is starting to pay dividends. 

I loved the Saul Goodman commercial.   If it were a real commercial, that guy would make money.

3 hours ago, Bama said:

Sooooooo. Krazy-8 tells Nacho he was short on his earnings for the week because he has a "new kid who saw a cruiser and ran and threw his stash down a sewer" - anyone else holler at their TV, "Jesse!?!?"?

Initially, but when we met Jesse he was cooking, not dealing. 

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Obviously Nacho will take down Hector, but I think he will work with Mike. He likely will not get approval from Gus, who has his own ax to grind with Hector. Besides, what else is Mike going to go the rest of the season? Maybe a certain veterinarian will supply the toxin. 

Kim was sooooo into Saul Goodman. 

At some point in BB Jesse talks about how he was used to being beaten. Maybe that's an indicator that he was selling and not cooking at one point in time. Then again, he himself gave Walt a couple or three beatdowns, so who knows. 

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6 hours ago, Knuckles said:

Hey Rebecca, you have been MIA for the past 3 years while Chuck has been under Jimmy's care. So, you want to be sure Jimmy is back on board as caretaker in chief, while you go on your way...and you try to guilt trip him into it...take a hike. Howard's advice to look to the future is spot on for both Chuck and Jimmy. Both need to just walk away. They are toxic together. And what happens to Chuck, is on Chuck, as he is still clearly malevolent, if mentally ill.

Great twist by Gilligan and the writers...I always had Gus as the one responsible for Tio's condition, but Nacho may be the one. He's not going to let Hector run over his father...and he must know that his dad is road kill if he works for Tio. 

Gus and his laundromat...I was almost nostalgic...and then Lydia!!. all the usual suspects are in now in play. 

And Jimmy refusing to fire Francesca...that's the Jimmy I love. And his fast thinking on how to sell that airtime...gotta hand it to Jimmy, he's never down for long. I admire that, Saul Goodman.

I think people are being very unfair to Rebecca.  She wasn't "MIA".  She and Chuck were divorced and she had no idea about his mental illness until earlier that day.  The fact that she would fly in to be there for him and then go to his house and knock on the door for an hour is admirable.  My ex-wife wouldn't cross the street to spit on me. :)

Sure, she doesn't get how much Chuck has hurt Jimmy, she is right that you don't abandon a mentally ill relative because he hurt your feelings.  

It seemed to me that she only wanted Jimmy to help her get Chuck to let her in.

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(edited)
1 hour ago, PeterPirate said:

Obviously Nacho will take down Hector, but I think he will work with Mike. He likely will not get approval from Gus, who has his own ax to grind with Hector. Besides, what else is Mike going to go the rest of the season? Maybe a certain veterinarian will supply the toxin. 

Kim was sooooo into Saul Goodman. 

At some point in BB Jesse talks about how he was used to being beaten. Maybe that's an indicator that he was selling and not cooking at one point in time. Then again, he himself gave Walt a couple or three beatdowns, so who knows. 

I expect Mike to be involved in tampering with Hector's pill(s).  It fits the Marco and Leonel pattern very well.  A bald third party picks up a cylindrical object that a Salamanca dropped and uses it against him, (Marco) and Mike delivers harmful medication.  (Leonel).

As far Jesse being beaten, I believe by the time he made that comment to Walt, we  had already seen him brutally beaten and hospitalized by Tuco and Hank, and  take a less serious beating from Krazy-8 amd Emilio.

I am guessing that Krazy-8's skittish dealer is Skinny Pete, who we know served jail time with Tuco and came up light, dealing for Jesse and Walt, when he was robbed by Spooge and Skank. 

Edited by Bryce Lynch
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